For Better or For Worse
by Tonallan
Summary: Lily Evans attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She makes friends, crushes, and comes into terms with herself as she studies magic and works out some problems.
1. For Better or for Worse I Fly

_Title: For Better or For Worse_

  
  


_Author: Tonallan_

  
  


_Disclaimer: Any recognizable character is not mine. Nearly all people and places are property of J. K. Rowling author of the Harry Potter series. I claim rights to my original characters and names._

  
  


_Summary: Lily Evans attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She makes friends, crushes, and comes into terms with herself as she studies magic and works out some problems._

  
  


_Authors Note: This is a trial chapter. If you all decide you want me to continue, the next part will be posted in about a month. This has to be a Lily/James story, because that's how it turns out, but both Lily and James will have other relationships. This is not a love/hate story, and it is not a love at first sight story. Some characters will die, due to failure to mention them in the Harry Potter books. Love to all who review, brownie points if you put me on author alert, favorite authors, or favorite stories. The title is taken from an original poem I wrote, and one line will be inserted in every part. If my storyline goes as planned (which it has to, as I'm using the poem) there will be ten parts. Eleven, possibly, if I wrote the whole thing in one part. This is only of course, if you all like my story._

_***_

  
  


For better or for worse I fly

***

  
  


Why is it that popular girls can go out with geeky guys, and everyone thinks it cute, but popular guys can't go out with geeky girls? In movies, the popular girl always "make ups" the geeky guy, and everyone is all cool with it. But guys cant all of a sudden decide they like that quiet girl in math, or that cute girl in science.   
But in my story, that's exactly what happened. 

***  
  
Luster Creek, England, was a cute little town about an hours drive away from Greenwich. In fact, if you went there right now, you would have never guessed that something was happening to someone that would change history. This someone was Lily Evans. This something is she just received a letter.  
"Um-hm," said Petunia absentmindedly. "So if it is real, do I go? And what'll I tell mom and dad? And what about my friends! They'll hate me!" Lily collapsed on her sister's bed, and Petunia swirled her desk chair to face her. "Lily, talk to mom and dad. They'll tell whether or not it's real. Then you can decide what to do."   
Lily nodded fervently, and as she left the room, she called "Thanks Petunia! You always know what to do!" Petunia nodded, and turned back to her deskwork. She wasn't really concentrating on it though. She was trying to control the indescribable jealousy about Lily getting a letter from Hogwarts.  
Three years ago, Petunia's friend Minny had been accepted into Hogwarts. Petunia was now fourteen, and past the age of being accepted. She leaned back and let out an aggressive sigh. "Why her?" she moaned.  
  
* * *  
  
Lily skipped alongside her mother as they headed through the streets of London. It seemed like ages ago that she had been crying to Petunia about what to do. Really, it had only been a week, but it seemed like eternity. After many tears, many arguments, debates, and what have you, Lily's parents had decided to allow her to attend Hogwarts on September 1st.   
They were looking for the Leaky Cauldron. In the letter the owl had delivered, it stated that in order to enter Diagon Alley, they must enter it through the Leaky Cauldron, with the help of Jim, the old innkeeper.  
Suddenly, Mrs. Evans stopped in her tracks and tapped Lily's shoulder. "There it is," she whispered, pointing. Lily stared. Not an old place, nor a new, the Leaky Cauldron looked like a middle aged, small pub.   
When they entered, they saw an elderly man wiping the counter. Lily went up to him. "Aren't you a little young to be drinkin', missy?" Lily smiled politely. "I'm sorry to bother you sir, but we're looking for the entrance to Diagon Alley? I'm attending Hogwarts in the fall." The elderly man smiled and nodded, then they heard a crash and the sound of breaking glass. Jim hurried back into the storeroom and began to yell.  
"Dammit, Tom! That's the third glass this week! One more, and you're outta here!" Jim returned leading a man, no older than twenty or twenty-one, by the ear, and over to a broom closet, where Tom picked up a dustbin and went to go clean up the mess.  
Jim returned and told Lily to follow him. Lily beckoned for her mother to come, and the three headed outback and to a trashcan in front of a brick wall. He took out a long stick, and tapped a brick which wobbled for a moment then began to grow into an arch that revealed a busy looking street. Lily and her mother gazed in wonder.  
"That's Diagon Alley. Have a nice day," and Jim hurried off to the sound of breaking glass. Lily and her mother entered into Diagon Alley.  
Her first thought was "Oh god, this is majorly scary." But at a second glance, it seemed……different. Not what she was used to, but in a good way. She had no idea where she was going, but that was all right.   
Lily got out her Hogwarts list. First were books. She and her mother looked down the street until they spotted a store, which could only be a bookstore, because it had a display of them outside. She and her mother found the eight required books on the list, then went to the checkout counter.  
"That'll be one galleon, ma'am," said the young, pimply boy. "Beg pardon?" Said Mrs. Evans. "You deaf or sometin'? I said one galleon." "Erm, what's a galleon?" Mrs. Evans asked. The checkout guy slapped his forehead, "Oh dang you muggles! Look lady, you've gotta go all the way down to the great marble building. Go to the counter and exchange some money. You're lil' girl will hold your spot. 

Mrs. Evans nodded, and left the store. This left Lily in a very awkward position. "Hey! What's holding up the line?" yelled a guy in the back. "Just a moment!"  
Lily's mother returned, and paid the man with money Lily couldn't see. When they were outside Mrs. Evans said, "Oh god Lily, look at this!" She held out a large gold coin. Lily was memorized.   
"Hey!" a young boy, perhaps a year or two older than Lily, deliberately pushed into her. The boy was medium height, slightly overweight, and decidedly mousy looking. "Watch where your going!" the mouse-kid said, sneering, and hurried into the crowd.   
Lily scowled at his retreating back, then hurried after her mother, now several paces ahead.  
Along the street, Lily saw more people. There was a pet shop, which was dark and had strange noises coming from in; a wand shop, which Lily figured they would be going to later; a nick-nack shop, which she could only assume had absolutely nothing to do with her. But the thing that interested her most was Quality Quidditch Supplies.  
It appeared to be a broom shop. (The irony of this was enough to make her laugh) Outside were posters of different young men and woman, holding magnificent broomsticks, (all of which seemed to say Silver Arrow), and wearing multi-colored robes. They were all smiling and waving. Lily turned to point this out to her mother, when she stopped in her tracks.   
Six people, three boys, and three girls, were standing outside of Quality Quidditch Supplies. They were all dressed in such a manor that Lily recognized. All of them had that look. The look that only "popular" people had. They wore brand name clothes, their hair was always perfect, the girls wore make-up, and they never seemed to stop smiling.   
Lily longed to be one of them. At her old school, she had never quite cut the bill. However many people she knew, no matter what she wore, no matter who she hung out with, she never was quite cool enough. She never felt like one of them  
  
_"Hey Lily!" Chase Maddison walked up beside her on the way to school. "Sup?" Lily smiled and told him that she had a flute rehearsal tonight. "That's cool," he said. They walked without speaking for a few minutes, then Chase broke the silence.__  
__"Your friends with Ashton, right?" Lily nodded. "Do you know if she likes me?" Lily's heart sank. Couldn't Chase see that SHE like him? No of course not, she thought bitterly, he only wants that blond-headed, blue eyed, airhead who giggles and whines that her lips are chapped. _  
_Her eyes darkened as she answered curtly, "No, I don't." "Dang!" Chase said. "No one does! I really like Ashton, she is so pretty, and she's really popular, I mean no offense, 'cuz I know your not really one of us……" Lily stopped to turn and stare at Chase. _  
_Never in her life had she been so insulted._  
_"Hey Lily, what's up with you? Your face is turning all purple." "You, Chase Maddison, are THE most insulting, un-feeling, and incredibly pig-headed person I have ever met in my life!" And with that, she kissed him squarely on the mouth, and turned crying and running home, leaving a very bewildered Chase to stand and stare. _  
  
Lily closed her eyes in memory of this incident. She had stayed home from school for a week after this, and had refused to speak to Chase when she returned, though he tried to make amends several times afterwards.   
Lily and her mother went into Madame Malkins where she bought several long black robes, that were rather dull, though they fitted perfectly. Then, her mother went to buy her potion ingredients and cauldron while Lily entered Ollivanders Wand Shop alone.  
A new bell tinkled jovially, and a man, a very short man for that matter, came skipping out of the back of the shop. "Customers!" The man squealed excitedly. "And where's your mummy, little girl?" Lily told him that her mother was getting her potion ingredients.  
"Well, that's all right, we may as well have you fitted up for a wand." Lily came over to him, and a tape measurer flew off a shelf, and began to measure her right arm. She screamed softly, and Mr. Ollivander fell off of an extremely high shelf. He got up, brushing himself off, "What's wrong, dearie, what's wrong?"   
"The tape measurer…….it was attacking me!…….It just flew off the shelf and……" Lily made dramatic motions with her arms to emphasize this. She was hurt that Mr. Ollivander was practically rolling on the floor in his laughter. "What?" she asked, genuinely annoyed that he wasn't taking her seriously. "It did!" Mr. Ollivander, regaining his composure, told her "Of course it did! It's supposed too! That's its job!" Then Mr. Ollivander began to climb back up the ladder, muttering and giggling to himself.   
The tape measurer flew back to Lily's arm and began to measure other parts of her body, while she eyed it suspiciously and listened to Mr. Ollivander at the same time.  
"Ollivander wands are best wands that you can find on this side of the country. They are made from over one hundred variety of woods, ranging from beachwood, to oz bark, to holly, to mistletoe. We use only the finest ingredients: dragon heartstring, unicorn tail hairs, and phoenix feathers! Every Ollivander wand is different, the wand chooses the wizard you know," he said, releasing a titter.   
"Here we are! Try this one: thirteen inches, oz bark and unicorn tail." Lily, feeling extremely nauseous, waved the wand the air. Nothing. Mr. Ollivander placed the wand carefully back into its box.   
Mr. Ollivander then had her try a wand made of beech wood and dragon heartstring, twelve inches. Still no results.  
Her third wand seven inches, made of oak and unicorn tail. But still there was nothing.   
"Here we are, ten and a quarter inches long, willow and phoenix feather." When Lily held this wand, she felt suddenly as through she could do anything, anything at all. She might even have the guts to face Chase again.  
Smiling in amusement, she waved the wand. Bang! A barricade of silver stars cascaded from above her head. Lily heard clapping and turned around to find her mother, and another family all clapping and smiling. Lily grinned in amazement and gave an over exaggerated bow.  
The father of the family came over to her and shook her hand. "James Potter," he said, beckoning, "And this my son, also James. I assume you'll be attending Hogwarts in the fall?" Lily nodding, flushed with happiness.  
James Potter Jr. stepped forward. He had lovely dark hair, and deep brown eyes. Lily guessed that he was about her age. "Pleased to meet you," he said, taking her hand and kissing it. "I'm sorry I didn't catch your name?" Lily drew her hand back, embarrassed and said more to the floor that to either of the James "I'm Lily."   
Lily and her mother went to the back of the room, where they paid for her wand (seven galleons!) and left the shop just as the younger James had found a wand, making a large boom and creating a lot of smoke.   
Feeling contented and happy, Lily left Diagon Alley, swinging her back jovially and skipping alongside her mother.  
  
* * *  
  
September first finally came, much to the disappointment of Petunia. Lily had washed and ironed her robes, read all of her spell books, and played with her wand a bit. She couldn't wait for her lessons where she could be the first one to turn a match into a needle.  
When she got to the train station though, she had no idea how she was going to get to Hogwarts, much less get to her lessons. Her father went off to find out where platform 9 ¾¾ was, and she and her mother and sister waited patiently. When her father returned feverishly telling them that there was no Platform 9 ¾¾, Petunia threw her first fit ever.   
"I told you!" she shrieked. "It doesn't exist! It was a joke! She's a freak! Now what'll we do?!" Lily was stunned. She had never seen her sister behave so, and it didn't occur to her that Petunia was jealous.   
Her father led Petunia off to cool down, and her mother and Lily began frantically searching for Platform 9 ¾¾ .  
Fifteen minutes later, at 10:30, Lily was frustrated, as she leaned back against a barrier-  
And fell right through it. Lily stood up and saw a scarlet steam engine, and around it, hundreds of people. There was a group of goys, leaning around in a circle, with a cage in the center; There were a few girls leaning out of windows talking to their parents; There were older teens climbing onto the train, and meeting friends; Then, there was "that" group. Lily sighed. I hate cliques.   
It suddenly occurred to Lily that she should get her mother. Turning around, she noticed that where she had fallen through, there was a large archway, like the one in Diagon Alley. Lily closed her eyes and walked through the barrier and ran smack into her mother.   
"Mom!" She said excitedly, "I found it! I found Platform 9 ¾¾. Its here! Its here! Oh come on, get my trunk!" And Lily dragged her mother, half dazed through the barrier to the Hogwarts Express.   
Once on the platform, Mrs. Evans helped Lily load her trunk into one of the empty compartments. They stood awkwardly for a moment, until Lily threw her arms around her mother.  
"I'm going to miss you!" she wailed. Lily buried her head in her mothers chest, breathing in her scent, and her mother held her close. Mrs. Evans held her away for a moment. "Oh, baby, you're going to have so much fun! Just promise to write me every few weeks, and I'll send you presents, and you'll be home for the holidays……" Mrs. Evans trailed off as Lily pulled away.   
"G'bye, mom." Lily said the words with finality, and gave her mother one last hug before she left.

  
  


Once her mother had gone, and the train had started moving, Lily settled down into her seat with a book, and was reading intently when she heard someone gasp in surprise. "Lily Evans?" Lily look up on hearing her name, and was surprised to see a familiar face. "Minnie!" she squealed, recognizing one of her sisters friends. The two girls embraced.   
"I didn't know you were coming here!" Minnie squealed, "Petunia should have told me! Oh wait till you see it, Hogwarts is the best!"   
"Is it really that good?" Lily asked. Minnie smiled secretively. "C'mon, I'll show you." Minnie took Lily by the hand and led her down the hallway into another compartment.   
"Guys," she said upon entering, "I want you to meet Lily. She's an old friend of mine." Instantly, Lily received four "Hellos" and several welcoming smiles. "I'm Molly," said a short girl with shockingly red hair. "Nice to meet you."  
A girl with stringy blonde hair and a sunny smile said "I'm Susanna." Lily grinned back.   
"Name's Mike," said a tall boy with dark hair.   
"And I'm Andrew, but most people call me Andy. 'Cept my mom." The people in the compartment laughed. Lily turned to see the most gorgeous boy she had ever seen sitting in the seat by the window. She smiled nervously.   
"Sit down," said Minnie, taking a seat herself. Lily nervously took the only empty seat in the compartment-next to Andy.   
"Say Lily," said Mike, "Have you ever played Quidditch before?" Lily shook her head, wondering what on earth Quidditch could be. "No," she asked curiously, "What is it?"  
Mike was amused. "It's a game," he said, "played on broomsticks in the air. There's three goal posts at each end, and four balls." Mike began to explain about the players and the balls. "There's three Chasers. They throw the quaffle, a large red ball, through the hoops at each end. The Keeper guards the goal posts. Then there are two Bludgers. They shoot around knocking people off their brooms. So that's why they have Beaters, who protect their team from Bludgers, and send them towards the other team.  
"The last ball is the Golden Snitch. It's really tiny, and it's the Seekers job to catch the ball. It's very difficult, and only the most daring and bold players-"  
"Oh, quit bragging!" Said the girl they called Molly. She rolled her eyes at Lily, "Mike plays Seeker for Gryffindor."  
"What's Gryffindor?" Asked Lily. "It's one of the houses." Said Susanna. "There's also Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Hope you don't get in Slytherin-but you don't seem the type."   
"What's so bad about Slytherin?" Lily asked. The others glanced at each other. "Well, I don't want to bad mouth the other houses," said Andy, "But Slytherin has a reputation for turning out bad wizards."   
"How do you know what house you'll be in?" asked Lily, now nervous that she might end up in Slytherin. The others glanced at each other again. "Cant tell ya," said Mike, "School secret." An awkward silence followed.  
"Say," said Andy suddenly, "Why I don't I introduce you to my brother and his friends." "How olds your brother?" asked Lily. "Eleven, and as annoying as hell," the others laughed, "But he's a first year, like you, so he might be better company then us."  
"What year are you in?" Asked Lily. "Third," said Minnie, "We all are." "Will I have any classes with you?" Lily asked. Minnie shook her head, "Most likely not. You'll be with people of your year, in your house. If your in Gryffindor though," she added, "We'll see you more often." Lily nodded.  
"C'mon," said Andy, leading her out. "Bye Minnie," said Lily as she left.   
Andy led her down the corridor, and knocked softly on a door before opening it. "Hey squirt," Andy said, pulling the door open. Three boys were sitting hunched up on the floor, all squinting at a piece of paper with lots of little x's and o's on it.   
"Hayter, I want you to meet Lily Evans. Lily, I want you to meet my brother Hayter." A blonde boy with dark eyes looked up from the parchment, and smiled mischievously at Lily. "Hello," said Lily nervously. The other two boys looked up, and Lily recognized one of them as the boy from the wand shop. The other one had brown hair, and was clearly the most energetic of the group.   
"Now," said Andy, crossing his arms over his chest. "You're going to be nice to Lily, and you're going to introduce her to some of your friends. And don't tease her, either, she's a friend of mine." He glared at the three boys, and Lily beamed at Andy.   
"We will," all three boys said at once, smiling innocently up at Andy. Andy gave them a last glare, and left the compartment.  
"So," said the boy called Sirius, "You're friends with Andy, eh? I feel sorry for you." Lily smiled slightly. "Well, his friend Minnie is an old friend of mine- my sisters, really-and she introduced me."   
The boys stared at her. "I'm muggle-born," she said, "what about you?" This instantly cleared up any questions the boys might have had. "We've all got wizard parents," said James. "Say," he said suddenly, "You wanna help us with something?"   
Lily nodded reluctantly. Whatever they were doing, it might help to get involved. She and the others crouched down around the paper. Lily could now see it was a map, a map of what appeared to be an extremely large castle. On one edge, Lily could read an untidy scrawl that clearly read "Hogwarts". She gasped in surprise.  
"It's enormous!" She squealed. The boys laughed. "'Course it is," said Hayter, "I heard that when it opened, it had ten thousand students," he said smugly. Sirius laughed even harder. "Where'd you hear that?" he asked through peels of laughter. "Did you tell it to yourself?" Hayter play punched him, and then they bother burst out laughing again.  
"So what are you guys doing anyway?" she asked. The boys were suddenly somber, eager to explain what they were up to. "We," James began, "are going to pull of the Sorting Scene of the century." "Only the century?" Hayter asked in mock confusion, "If this goes as planned, it'll be the prank of the millennium!" Sirius hurried to explain.  
"When the kids are getting sorted, we're not going to be there. When they call our names though-well, technically my name, since it comes first alphabetically- we're going to put out the lights and come out in glow in the dark clothes and freak everybody out."  
The boys again bust into laughter. "Man, this is going to be the best!" James said. He, Sirius, and Hayter, then proceeded to engage in a handshake that consisted of a shake, a punch, a duck, and a "Wooga-Wooga". Lily grinned, and it occurred to her that they had been friends for a very long time.  
  
When the train began to slow down, Lily was beginning to think that boarding school might not be so bad. They had discussed 'the Plan' as it was dubbed, in more detail, and Lily had had a few ideas to contribute. Now, the boys were going to wear glow in the dark hats as well, so the effect would have greater impact. Their costumes would also emit ghastly music, and would mildly shock anyone who touched it.  
Though Lily was no where near advanced enough to perform these spells, the three boys seemed to know exactly how to do it.  
Hayter had also succeeded in explaining Quidditch to Lily far more understandably (and with less bragging) then Mike. She also learned that all three boys were Quidditch players. Hayter played Beater, and was pretty decent. Sirius played Seeker, as he was a bold flyer, but had a tendency to release the Snitch in his excitement at winning, causing his team to be disqualified. James was apparently the best. He as a Chaser, and was, as far as Lily could tell by their descriptions, the youngest and best flyer on this side of the Atlantic.  
Although Lily liked all of the boys, she couldn't help but have a slight crush on Hayter. Like his brother, he had stunningly good looks and the ability to make people laugh. He practically carried an aura around him that shouted to you "Look at me!"  
When they got off of the train, the first years students were grouped together, as the others were herded onto a path. The first years were ushered to the edge of a large moat, where they were greeted by a woman of about sixty who possessed more energy then the anxious first years could muster.  
"Four to a boat, and hurry! We're going to be late!" Lily climbed into a boat with the boys, and tried not to feel too apprehensive as it pulled away from shore without any sign of a motor or oars.   
After they passed through a tunnel, Lily had her first view of Hogwarts.  
Out of a story book, Hogwarts was positioned on the top of small rise, and silhouetted against the moon, its rays reflected across the water to it, casting an alluring light on the castle. With many indistinguishable turrets and towers running through its boundaries, Hogwarts gave the impression that one could get lost extremely easily. Light poured out of nearly every window, and the sound of chatter and laughter echoed across the lake.  
"It's magnificent, isn't it?" Hayter whispered in her ear, making her shiver even more. He draped his arm casually across her shoulder, under the impression she was cold, as James and Sirius sniggered behind them.   
When they grounded, he took her hand and led her up the path with the other students, and they came face to face with large, oak, double doors, which the energetic old woman pounded on impatiently.   
A middle aged woman with soft brown curls, and pleasant features answered the door, her features not looking so pleasant, rather looking harassed. "Thanks, Professor Litoff," she said, ushering the students into a magnificent marble hall. "Students," she said, turning to them, "Since my mother has obviously not introduced herself, this is Professor Litoff, your future Professor of Astronomy.   
"I am Professor Vaskas, your Deputy Headmistress. If you would please follow me, I will take you into the Great Hall, in which you will be sorted." Lily and the boys dropped behind the students, and Lily promised to save them seats. James laughed, "Only if we're in the same house and we don't get expelled first." Lily then caught up with the other students, and the boys hid behind the staircase. 

The first years filed into the Great Hall, facing four tables in which students of every age were sitting. Behind them was the staff table. As they filed in, Lily heard other students mutter "That's Albus Dumbledore." Lily craned her head around and got a glimpse of a man with a silver hair and beard, before a small man carried in a stool and a rather battered looking hat. The entire student body stared at the hat silently, so Lily did too. Momentarily, a wide rip near the bottom opened up and began to sing. 

  
  


_Of the great four founders__  
__Each one was poles apart_  
_They all prized different qualities_  
_Though all were true of heart_  
_Gryffindors were bold and tough_  
_And were among the bravest_  
_And Ravenclaw chose the ones_  
_Who would be the cleverest_  
_Hufflepuffs will always be_  
_Fair, and true, and loyal_  
_Slytherins are powerful_  
_And with their dreams they toil_  
_For many years, I have chosen_  
_Those of every house_  
_And never yet have I been wrong_  
_No game of cat and mouse_  
_So sit me atop your head_  
_Lets have look inside_  
_I'll tell you what house you're in_  
_Its no trouble to decide!_  
  
As the hat finished its song, the entire room burst into applause. Lily grinned at the hat as the first student (Abott, Daniel!) was called forward to try on the hat. After a moment, the hat shouted out "Hufflepuff" and the table on the middle right applauded as he joined them. Secretly, Lily thought they applauded so that Daniel sat at the right table.  
Four more students were called, then as "Black, Sirius!" was called, the entire room when black. Lily had to bite her lip to keep from laughing as three figures with green glowing robes and pointed hats entered the room, and loud sounds of music centered around them. Some students screamed, most just sat petrified in their seats.  
The three figures danced around the hall, waving their arms and emitting their horrifying music. Every now and then, one could hear students yelping in pain as they touched their clothes.  
The music and glowing stopped as the lights flickered on. I looked up to find that (1) the lights were not electric, they were candles and (2) the ceiling was either invisible or enchanted to look like the sky. I thought that it was enchanted.   
The boys froze in place. In one motion, everyone began laughing, first a low chuckle, then a loud rumble. The short man who had brought in the Sorting Hat told James, Sirius, and Hayter to go stand in line. Grinning like Cheshire cats, James and Hayter came to stand next to me, and Sirius went and sat on the stool with the hat which quickly shouted "Gryffindor!" everyone clapped very hard, but none harder then us three.   
Of us four, I was next being sorted. Before me was "Earlinger, Andrea" who was a Gryffindor. When my name was called, I nervously went forward and sat on the stool as the hat was placed on my head. The hat fell over my eyes, and all I could see was darkness. I felt as though my brain was being shuffled through, my memories read and carefully considered. _Please let me be with the boys_, I thought to myself. _Oh, you like them do you? Should have known. Well, you're very brave, Miss Evans. I think you'd make a good _GRIFFINDOR! The last word was shouted out and the table on the far right exploded with cheers.  
Shakily I walked over and sat between Andrea and Sirius who hit me hard on the back. The next Gryffindor was Remus Lupin. He came and sat across from me. He seemed like a nice boy, but very nervous, exactly how I felt.  
James came just a few people after Remus. He was sorted into Gryffindor, and the entire hall clapped very hard. James stood and bowed rather mockingly, and came and sat by Sirius grinning like a maniac.  
Another memorable student sorted was a boy with rather dark and greasy hair called Severus Snape. He was sorted into Hufflepuff, and several evil looking boys from Slytherin and from the line still waiting to be sorted smirked at him. In disgust, he walked at sat alone at the Hufflepuff table.   
The last person to be sorted was Hayter. The hat no sooner touched his head when he was declared a Gryffindor, and rushed to come sit by James. Sitting at the table, I had a better view of the staff table, and could see Albus Dumbledore more clearly.  
Like his school, he was right out of a storybook. He was tall, with long silver hair and a beard that fell past his waist. He was dressed in typical fairy tale style in a robe of dark purple with gold stars and a matching hat. He wore half-moon glasses and a look on his face that he knew a great many things, and many of them not worth knowing.   
He stood up as the students finished congratulating each other on their houses. Gradually, the students fell silent and Professor Dumbledore said with much dignity "As much as I'd like to speak about Hogwarts, and new students, and what an absolutely marvelous time you'll have here, I won't. You'll hear all about it from older students. For now, let us dine on our simply scrumptious food, and then I may trouble you with a few announcements."  
As soon as Professor Dumbledore sat down, food of every kind appeared on the golden platters. All the students and staff immediately tucked in, and the sound of people enjoying themselves soon filled the hall.   
The girl on Lily's right, Andrea, turned to Lily and whispered "Isn't Sirius cute?" Lily nearly choked as she turned to face her. She giggled uncontrollably and Andrea joined her. "Personally, I prefer Hayter," she said, keeping her voice low so as Sirius might not hear. "By the way, I'm Lily," she said. "Andrea," the girl said, shaking Lily's hand. Lily nodded and smiled at her new friend.   
When Lily had eaten as much of the scrumptious food as she could, she leaned back in her chair and listened to the chat that was going on around her. Most of it was about lessons, but some of it was about Hogwarts itself. 

Soon after, Professor Dumbledore again stood. The Great Hall hushed almost instantly. "I have only a few words for you before we go off to bed. For those new students, the Forbidden Forest, is, well, forbidden, and no one is under any circumstances to enter it.

"Also, several Quidditch posts are open. (The boys glanced at each other excitedely) Gryffindor is in need of a Chaser and a Beater, Slytherin a Keeper, Ravenclaw a Seeker, and all of Hufflepuff posts are full. If you are interested in playing for your house, contanct your head of house. The heads of houses are: Professor Litoff, Hufflepuff, Professor Vaskes, Gryffindor, Professor Quartez Slytherin, and Professor Lasaigh Ravenclaw. First year flying lessons will not begin until October, and they are not permitted on the house teams. Good night everyone."

Sirius, James, and Hayter seemed outraged that first years were not permitted on the house team, and started complaining loudly as our prefect led us to our common room. "It's just not fair, Lily!" Hayter said to me, as we walked behind a tapestry. I was thoroughly confused and had no idea which way we were headed. 

Hayter however, was concerned with the matter of Quidditch. "Hey, it's allright," I told him comfortingly. "Now you get to practice for a year and then blow everyone away next year." 

Hayter smiled at me and took my hand as we reached a rather large portrait of a fat woman in a pink dress. "The password is 'Hard Days Night'" the prefect told us, "You know, like the song." The portrait hole swung open to reveal a large room with a large fire place with large squashy purple couches and chairs positioned around the room and tables. There were two dormitories leading upstairs and the prefect pointed the boys up one, and the girls up another. 

  
  


I bid the boys goodnight at the foot of the staircase, and smiled at each of them in turn. Before I went up to my dorm, Hayter called me down. "I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked desperately. I nodded happily.

I followed Andrea up seven flights of stairs into a large, circular, and beautiful room. There were four beds, one for each me, Andrea, and our two other dorm mates, Laura and Alex. Between each bed was a night stand and a large window, floor lenght, that opened onto a small, central balcony. Along one side of the room, opposite the beds, was an extremely long dresser, designed to fit the curve of the room. Positioned at intervals along the dresser were four mirrors. There was a door at the opposite end that led to a batheroom with showers and several sinks.

Andrea and I fell down onto two beds next to each other, glanced at each other, and burst out laughing. 

Too tired for words, and for changing into my pajamas, I fell asleep on top of the covers dreaming of different scenarios that involved Hayter asking me out. 

  
  


_Authors Note: I did not mean for Lily to become such good friends with James and the gang. Rest assured, we will see much more of the gang, though less interaction and Lily will begin to like Hayter from afar._

_If you decide you want me to continue, in later chapters, Lily will again learn to deal with the fact of unpopularity, but will be more accepting about it. Also, Lily gets an admirer (not who you think! You will be surprised!) And she will also, over the summer, meet Chase again. This story is going to be original! _

_Love always,_

_Tonallan _


	2. Away Beneath the Wide Blue Sky

_Title: For Better or For Worse_

  
  


_Author: Tonallan_

  
  


_Disclaimer: Any recognizable character is not mine. Nearly all people and places are property of J. K. Rowling author of the Harry Potter series. I claim rights to my original characters and names._

  
  


_Summary: Lily Evans attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She makes friends, crushes, and comes into terms with herself as she studies magic and works out some problems._

  
  


_Authors Note: Due to my ecstatic reviewers :) _For Better or For Worse_ will continue! In this chapter, Lily goes through her first year and is ready to board the train. She gets an admirer, and you will be surprised because it's not Snape, James, Sirius, or Hayter (well, not really) ! She also becomes better friends with Andrea, and tell me if you want her to be a major, minor, or subtle character because I'm not sure if I like her. Love to all who review, and a cameo goes to the person who tells me what kind of ball they should have in third year :)_

  
  


_Pronunciation guide: Hayter- hi-der (hint: rhymes with cider)_

_Von Kann- von konn_

_Lasaigh- lie zay_

_Note: I'm never one for phonetic spelling._

  
  


***

Away beneath the wide blue sky

***

Lily always looked back on her first week at Hogwarts as the prologue to her later years there. She attended her classes and fell absolutely in love with Hogwarts in the process.

  
  


Transfiguration was taught by Professor Vaskas. The Professor was humorous, and enjoyed a good joke almost as much as Sirius. Though she rarely took points away from the Gryffindor house, she would not tolerate not trying, as Alex learned the hard way. As punishment for refusing to try to turn a piece hay into a needle, Alex had to spend Tuesday night turning a haystack into enough needles for all the grannies in the world.

  
  


Herbology was taught by Professor Aberdune. He was an elderly man who was in love with the plants he had to care for. Hopeless at all other types of magic, he was skilled in the garden, and Lily and Andrea soon learned never to ask him for advice on caring for the flower Aerioda. 

  
  


The head of Slytherin house, Professor Quartez, taught Defense Against the Dark Arts. Quartez was a middle aged woman, but very cranky. She continuously took points away from the Gryffindor house, causing her students to hate her.

  
  


Potions, or as the students soon learned to call it, Poisons, was taught by an evil looking, evil smelling, and rotten Potato (his nick name) Professor Potaeo. Potato was a young man in his thirties, who had blonde hair and green eyes. He had a shrill voice and an extremely straight nose that matched his hair. Contrary to the school rules, Potato wore green robes, and refused to answer why. He was known to favor the Slytherin house, but there was no double Poisons, so no one would ever know.

  
  


Her favorite class was charms. Taught by young Professor Lasaigh, it was easily the best. The charms they were taught were not exceedingly difficult, but Lily found it rather complex, and loved the great satisfaction after you had completed a charm.

  
  


Lily grew to be even closer friends with Andrea as the school year wore on. She found that they had so much in common. Both muggle born, and younger sisters, whose older sisters were jealous of Hogwarts. Andrea also had the same problem with her hair that Lily did- to keep it from getting so frizzy. Except of course, that Andrea's was chocolate brown and more wavy. 

  
  


Her friendship with the three boys distanced. Though she saw them all in every lesson, they rarely spoke, but Hayter flashed her a grin every morning as she came down to breakfast. She soon learned not to wave back though, as several people looked at her funny. Sirius, James, and Hayter played even more pranks and so much more elaborate then the Sorting Scene, that is soon faded into the back round, and their friendship with it.

  
  


Thus it was so as Lily, Andrea, and the other Gryffindor first years walked down the steps to their very first flying lesson on the ninth of October. Most of the first years were very excited, as well as nervous, especially the muggle- borns, who had never flown before. Hayter was very excited, he had told her so on the way down. 

  
  


"Be careful you don't go to high," he warned her. "And make sure you're very clear about which way you want to go, brooms can be very pushy." Lily laughed at the thought brooms could be pushy. "What's so funny?" he asked her. She was laughing so hard, she couldn't manage to answer, only to point at him. 

  
  


Hayter's face broke into the most joyous grin she had ever seen him wear. "You think I'm funny, eh? We'll see how funny I am!" He then proceeded to run to her, only a few paces ahead, but she soon took off running across the field. Hayter went after her, laughing, liking this new game.

  
  


Lily ran as fast as she could, though it was hard to with laughter spurting with every breath. They reached the muddy Quidditch pitch, and ran inside, kicking up mud and grass with every footfall. 

  
  


To the astonishment of her fellow peers, Lily climbed the bleachers, laughing all the way, with Hayter chasing after her. "That's enough!" a shrill voice yelled at them, as Lily reached the top row. 

  
  


In surprise, Hayter tripped and stumbled, nearly falling the many feet to the ground below. Both students turned to find the source of the voice, a young woman, sturdily built, with a deep tan and blonde hair pulled into a tight, but messy, bun. Her hands were on her hips, and she glared at the two children. 

  
  


"Down here. Now." The woman's voice was cruel as Lily and Hayter joined the end of the line. "Both of you will serve detention with me later tonight. Now," said the woman, turning to face the rest of the class, "My name is Madame Swift, and yes that is my name, and no I'm not a Professor." The class was silent.

Hopefully the rest of you aren't as foolish as these two," she jerked her head towards Lily and Hayter, "Because I'm here to make sure that all of you can ride a broom."

  
  


"You don't have to be a Quidditch star to participate in my class, but I expect that by the end of the year everyone should be able to decently ride a broom, as you won't take flying class next year." 

  
  


"We're not going to be flying today, as many of you have never even seen a broom before. Flying that way can cause chaos, and most likely, disaster." Madame Swift then proceeded to tell them about the history of Quidditch, and how it related to other broom sports. She also brought out her own model of the Silver Arrow, at which the wizard-born students gasped at. She taught them about different altitudes and their effect on the broom, and how build up of dirt and dust could cause "drag" and possibly cause the broom to stop flying altogether. 

  
  


After class, the Gryffindors trooped up towards the castle in varied states of disbelief. "I can't believe that," Andrea told Lily as the trumped up the stairs. "That was _amazing_!" Lily nodded in agreement, but her mind was on something else: what would this detention bring?

  
  
  
  
  
  


After dinner, Lily and Hayter walked down to the Quidditch pitch, and into the locker area, where they were told to meet Madame Swift. On the way down, Hayter refused to speak to her, or even to look at her, though she tried to catch his eye several times. 

  
  


Madame Swift was waiting for them when they got inside. Her rotten attitude seemed to have disappeared, and she was very cheery as she told them that they had to polish all thirty-six of the student brooms. She handed them a pot of polish, and went into her office.

  
  


Hayter and Lily set to work immediately. It wasn't a very difficult task, and Lily had to admit that it was very satisfying to see a perfect broomstick. Hayter worked at his task aggressively refusing to speak to her, and knocking over a pot of polish in the process. 

  
  


It spilt all over the floor, and Lily hurried to help him clean it. "This is all your fault!" he told her angrily. Lily stared at him in disbelief. _He_ had chased _her_! She was speechless. She threw down her rag, and went back to polishing the brooms. Hayter however, was way ahead of her, and finished exactly half of the brooms and left without a good-bye.

  
  


"You could have at least put your rag away," she muttered spitefully. 

  
  


"Don't fret," said a comforting voice. Lily looked up to see Madame Swift standing in the doorway to her office. "It's alright, boys will be boys." Lily sighed. "But why did _Hayter _have to decide to be like other boys?!" 

  
  


Madame Swift gave her a sympathetic smile. "Aww, don't worry about it. There'll be other boys, you're only eleven." Lily sniffed, "Eleven and 1/2." Madame Swift laughed. "Well, Miss Lily Evans who is eleven and 1/2," her eyes sparkled, "You did a very good job cleaning these brooms. How would you like to test one of them out?" 

  
  


Lily looked up in disbelief. "I thought you said that we wouldn't be riding brooms today!" Madame Swift smiled, "Just don't tell anyone, come on, grab that Nimbus over there, and we'll go teach you how to fly." Lily grabbed the beautiful broom, and examined it carefully. Written in gold letters near the top were the words _Nimbus 1000_. If Lily survived her first year of school, she'd have to get a broom.

  
  


Madame Swift talked her through steering, and told her how to take off, and to be very careful. She showed Lily how to mount her broom, and to kick on three. "One...Two...Three!" On "Three!" Lily kicked off the ground, hard. She whooshed into the air.

  
  


Her fear was left on the ground. Flying was wonderful, it was _spectacular._ Halting her broom, Lily turned to face the other end, and then leaned forward and she sped towards the goal posts. She flew threw one of them, and let out a whoop of joy. She slowed down, turned, and raced back towards the other end. Madame Swift had kicked off and leveled herself with Lily.

  
  


They slowed down closer towards the middle, and Madame Swift was grinning just as hard as Lily was. "It's time you go down now, sweet. But tell you what, if you come back here next Tuesday evening, I'll teach you some more." Lily beamed at Madame Swift. "That would be marvelous!" she squealed, before landing her broom, not very gracefully, but safely. 

  
  


She put her broom in the locker room, then left through the side door. She wrapped her cloak around her as she walked, but not because she was cold. When she climbed up the steps of the castle, she looked back, and gave a sigh of content. _This year is going to fabulous, with or without Hayter._

  
  


***

  
  


With Halloween only a week away, it seemed to Lily that the entire school got into the spirit. Teachers began to decorate their classrooms and offices with pumpkins and leaves, and black cats soon littered the school- one couldn't get out of bed without tripping over one. But it was in this was that Lily got her very own kitten, whom she named Laurasia. 

  
  


Her classes progressed well. She found that she was decently good at all of her subjects, but her favorite remained charms. She even managed to charm Laurasia's hair to be striped with orange.

  
  


The day before Halloween, a Thursday, was the day of the Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. According to tradition, Lily dressed herself in scarlet and gold, and helped the other girls in her dorm to make a banner with the Gryffindor lion on it. 

  
  


As good as her word, Madame Swift had been teaching her to fly better. Though she was no where as good as anyone on the Quidditch teams, she was becoming pretty decent. Madame Swift had also become a good friend of Lilys''. She was like a second mother, or rather, a Hogwarts mother.

  
  


Another good friend Lily had acquired was a third year named Arthur Weasley. He was the new Chaser on the Gryffindor house team, and as another friend of Madame Swift, he had also been assisting her in her flying lessons. As Minnie had said, since they were in different years, she didn't get to see Arthur, Minnie, or any of her friends very often. 

  
  


As these friendships progressed, those with Hayter did not. He had stopped waving to her at breakfast, and refused to speak or look at her in any of their classes. When they were paired together in Poisons, he braved his fears and asked Potato to be reassigned. 

  
  


Lily watched Hayter, James, and Sirius, each take the arm of a Ravenclaw girl (clad in scarlet) down to the Quidditch pitch. Lily sat with Andrea, Alex, and Laura in the stands, and they held their banner up and waited for the Quidditch players to enter the stadium. 

  
  
  
  


"Oh, honestly, Lily!" Alex said, throwing her curly blonde locks to the side. "Would you stop staring at Hayter!" Lily blushed and looked at her feet as the other girls giggled. "Eek!" Andrea squealed, "Hold up on the banner, it's falling!"

  
  


The girls had no more time for chatter though, as the announcer (a Hufflepuff boy whose name was unknown to Lily) called their attention to the field, where the Quidditch teams were appearing. "Hufflepuff! Leroy, Samuels, Hunt, Diggory, Mumps, Acne, aaaannndd......Von Kann!" At the sound of the Hufflepuff Seekers name and appearance, everyone in the crowd went wild, especially the girls in nearly every year, and Harry Von Kann was a third year. Lily had to admit that he was gorgeous.

  
  


"Gryffindor! Weasley, Patil, Bell, Johnsan, Boot, Davis, aaaannndd.....Perles!" This name also gave extreme cheering from the crowd, because Mike was an extremely talented Seeker. The captains (Leroy and Bell) shook hands in the center and then a whistle blew.

  
  


"And they're off! Weasley immediately takes the Quaffle, and is hurtling towards the goal posts! Oh! Weasley passes off to Patil just as a Bludger hits him! Patil continues-he shoots-he scores! Ten-zero, Gryffindor!" The scarlet-clad crowd cheered wildly, and Lily noticed that Hayter had draped his arm around his blonde babe. 

  
  


"And Hufflepuff takes control of the quaffle. That's Hunt shooting down the field- look at her go! She shoots-she s- misses! Still ten-zero, and Bell now has the quaffle. He scores! Twenty-zero, Gryffindor."

  
  


The Hufflepuff Seeker, Harry Von Kann, had suddenly flown upward, his arm outstretched. Mike took off after him. "What's this?! Has Von Kann spotted the Snitch?!" Indeed he had, for he pulled level, clutching a golden ball in his right hand. 

  
  


"Hufflepuff wins!" the Hufflepuff boy cried. Harry Von Kann had taken a victory lap around the field, blowing kisses to all the girls, and shouting his victory as the results were shouted. "And now, a word from our great Seeker!" the Hufflepuff commentor said happily, handing the mike over.

  
  


Harry Von Kann look extremely confident as he said, "I'd like to dedicate this victory to all the ladies out there," the crowd shrieked, "But to one in particular. Baby, I don't know your name, but she's a first year Gryffindor with gorgeous red hair. I love you, girl!" 

  
  


Lily's face turned as red as she thought she would ever go. Her friends as well other girls in the crowd cat-called at her, and she laughed nervously, and timidly blew a kiss at Harry, who was standing directly across the field. He mimed catching it, and planting it on his cheek. She smiled.

  
  


As the stands emptied, she hurried up to the Gryffindor common room and up to her dorm before anyone could come and tease her about Harry having a crush on her. 

  
  


***

  
  


The next day was Halloween. Lily came down to breakfast amid cat-calls from good natured Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs, and the Hufflepuff Seeker, Harry, waved to her from his position of glory at the Hufflepuff table. She smiled and sat down next to Andrea and Sirius. "Don't mind Hayter," Sirius whispered in her ear. Lily looked down the table to see Hayter glaring in the vicinity of the Hufflepuff table.

  
  


She nodded in satisfaction and began to butter a roll with an air of dignity. Sirius laughed, "Don't bother, Ms. Evans. It's so painfully _obvious_ that you like him. He talks about you." Lily dropped her knife into the butter dish with a clatter. Several people turned to stare at her. Hiding his own grin, Sirius continued, "Anyway, don't you worry about Hayter. He'll come to his senses soon enough." Sirius brushed the crumbs from his shirt, and left the Great Hall.

  
  


***

  
  


Harry didn't waste any time in confronting her. She had no sooner stood up from her seat that he rushed over to her. "I'm sorry to embarrass you, Lily," he said. "But would you do me the great honor of walking to the lake with me?" Andrea looked at Lily using the look that clearly said "Go and hurry to tell me what happens!" 

  
  


Using the owls that had burst into the room as a diversion, Lily ran out of the Great Hall and up the stairs, down the hallways, and into the door that led to owlry. She leaned against the door and sighed in relief. That had been _extremely_ embarrassing. But to see the look on Hayters face...Was it worth it? How would Harry feel, being used as a tool of revenge? And how could she deal with that kind of guilt? 

  
  


***

  
  


The Halloween feast was spectacular. As the sorting feast, the house tables were filled with more food than ever imaginable. But unlike the Sorting feast, there were gigantic pumpkins all around the room, courtesy of the gamekeeper Ogg, and dancing skeletons floated above their heads. 

  
  


A surprise though, was when Dumbledore stood and announced that rather then going straight to bed as normal, there would be a scavenger hunt. Ravenclaw and Slytherin would be paired together, and, much to Andrea's amusement and Lily's exasperation, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor would be paired together. 

  
  


"Now," said Dumbledore, "Not to make this competition any more competitive, the winning team will be treated to a round of butterbeers." There was a cheer from everyone, and he continued, "The rules of the games are this: You will be given a clue. You must first figure out the clue, agree on where you will look first. At the bottom of your clue will be an incantation to say when you find the place. And then you'll see what happens." Dumbledore smiled mischievously.

  
  


" Everyone on your team will be grouped to you with a hand holding charm. You _must_ stay with your group. Disqualification will result if you do not."

  
  


Professor Vaskas stood up. "Would the Gryffinpuffs please stand over here, and the Slytherclaws over here," she pointed at opposite ends of the room. Lily and Andrea went to go stand with the rest of their group, where Lily was greeted by Harry Von Kann. 

  
  


"Hi Lily," he said, blushing. Lily blushed too. "All right, if you will all please hold hands," said Professor Vaskas, "No, not in a circle, you need at least two hands. I want the Prefects on the ends to be able to use their wands..." Lily ended up holding hands with Andrea and Harry. 

  
  


"All right!" Dumbledore said, charming two glowing objects to him. One was yellow and red, and the other was green and blue. "Let the games begin!" The clues flew from Dumbledore into the waiting hands of the Prefects. The Gryffindor Prefects name was Kennilworthy Whisp, and the Hufflepuff Prefects name was Amos Diggory. 

  
  


Diggory read the clue aloud. "_In all my "arms", I hold your clue, It's glowing bright, it taste goods too! It's kind of dark, and really wet. Where am I? Come on, place a bet!_"

  
  


The rest of the team was thoroughly confused. "Okay, think aloud," Harry told them. "Well," said Minnie, "It obviously not human, and its in a place that's dark- not that tells us much, everywhere outside is..."

  
  


"It's the giant squid!" Someone said. The Prefects looked at each other and nodded. "Alright, everyone: outside!" Whisp led the way outside and headed towards the lake. "I didn't know Hogwarts had a giant squid," Lily whispered to no one in particular. Harry whispered back, "Yeah, it's been here for years. It's actually very friendly."

  
  


When they got to the lake, they saw that the Giant Squid was waiting for them. It was indeed a giant, and had at least several dozen tentacles. "Where's the clue?" Andy yelled. "Oh!" Said Lily excitedly. "We need to say the incantation!" Since it was Diggory who held the clue, he read the incantation. No one could hear what he said, but it must have worked because the Giant Squid swam to shore, and released the red and yellow clue from somewhere on his person. 

  
  


"This is pretty cool, isn't it?" Harry whispered to her later. Lily nodded, she enjoyed it. They weren't doing very well, their fourth clue had them stumped, and the Slytherclaws had already won. As a team though, they wanted to honestly finish the game. Come on, you put Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors together and they don't finish? Get real. 

  
  


*** 

The next morning Lily woke up to the shrieking of her dorm mates. She blearily opened one eye, to see that they were all crowded around the window. Sitting up all of the way now, she asked them what was outside. Grandly, they moved aside to reveal Harry sitting on his broom. He grinned at her, "Come for a ride with me?" he asked. Lily giggled. "Let me get dressed first!" 

  
  


She hurriedly changed into jeans and a green fitted top that matched her eyes. (A/N: Cheesy! Sorry!) She also brushed her hair and teeth quickly, before stepping from the bathroom back into her room. Harry was now standing in her room, easily chatting with her dorm mates.

  
  


He smiled when he saw her. "Come on, we'll go into Hogsmeade." Lily climbed onto his Silver Arrow behind him, and he kicked off. "So you have a crush on me?" She said, as they flew over the Hogwarts grounds. He turned to face her, and Lily noticed he had beautiful blue eyes. "That depends on whether or not we have a good time today."

  
  


Lily had never heard of Hogsmeade before. She had never spoken with Harry before, well not really. So why on earth did she feel so attracted to him? Was it because he was good-looking? Because all of the other girls in her school wanted to go with Harry? She certainly didn't know.

  
  


When they landed in a field behind a rather large and ugly house, Lily found out what Hogsmeade was. How could she not, there was a huge sign telling her. "Hogsmeade Village- Only all-magical community in all of Britain!" Lily pointed it out to Harry, and he laughed. "Stuck up snobs!"

  
  


Harry led her into a brunch restaurant- Lily didn't have time to read the name- where they sat in a booth and he ordered a sticky bun, "To share," he added, smiling at Lily.

  
  


True to his word, Harry showed her a great time. They walked up and down the street several times, and bought a butterbeer in the Three Broomsticks. Harry bought her half a pound of fudge in Honeydukes, though she protested mildly. Her protests stopped the instant she tasted the fudge.

  
  


They were walking back to the large and ugly house that night, hand in hand, when they suddenly heard a loud scream piece the silence. Lily clutched Harrys hand in fear, and they both stopped in their tracks. The screams soon ceased, but were replaced first by howling and then by the horrible sound of an animal screaming. 

  
  


Both scared out of their minds, they grabbed his broom from behind the house quickly, and took off immediately. Lilys' fear subsided as she was again taken over by the sensation of flying. 

  
  


Rather than taking her to her dorm, Harry landed smoothly on the front steps of Hogwarts. He helped her off of her broomstick, and they stood awkwardly for a moment. "So did you have a good time?" Lily asked lamely. She mentally smacked herself. 

  
  


Harry nodded, licking his lips. "Lily . . . I know that we haven't known each other long and all but . . . would you be terribly mad if I kissed you?" Lily shook her head, and received her first real kiss, standing on the front steps of her school, from the pride of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. 

  
  


***

  
  


Immediately after Halloween, the Christmas Season began. The pumpkins were replaced by trees, the cats by tinsel, and the other odds and ends by mistletoe, holly, and evergreen branches. 

  
  


Not that Lily minded. Mistletoe around the school was certainly a plus. After all, she had gotten to kiss several boys. The first time though, was rather awkward. 

  
  


_Lily hurried down the huge marble stairs into the entry way and ran headfirst into James Potter. "Oh, sorry James!" Lily had ended up on the floor, but James wasn't so lucky, he had landed on the stairs. "Are you okay?" she asked him, standing up and brushing herself off. _

  
  


_"Yeah, I guess so. Help me up?" James held out his hand and Lily pulled him upwards and waited while he brushed himself off. "I gotta go, then," she said, turning to go. "Wait! Lily," Lily turned around and James pointed upwards. Lily glanced up to see a spring of mistletoe strung into a bough of evergreen. _

  
  


_"Oh, come on, James. No ones around, no one will know!" James smiled mockingly. "I never pass up the chance for a free kiss." Mockingly, he closed his eyes and puckered his lips. Lily groaned, and kissed him swiftly on the lips, then hurried into the Great Hall where Harry was waiting. Mostly so James wouldn't see her burning face, rather than her excitement to see Harry._

  
  


Yes, she was still seeing Harry. She had grown quite fond of him, and he of her. He was such a nice guy! He made her laugh, and didn't mind when she had to kiss other boys under the mistletoe. Of course, they both preferred when they had to kiss each other, often making show of it; Harry bending her over and kissing her energetically with students and teachers looking on.

  
  
  
  


It was things like that that made her fall head over heels for Harry. He could make her laugh so easily. Also, he spoiled her with little gifts nearly every day, things like jewelry, chocolates, flowers, and poems. He was purely wonderful. 

  
  


*** 

  
  


On the 13th of November, Lily was walking back up to the castle with Harry from the lake, when they saw an extremely large figure dragging an enormous Christmas Tree to the castle. "Who's that?" Lily asked Harry. "Dunno," Harry replied, "Lets go find out." They started walking in that general direction, and when they were in earshot, Harry called out, "Would you like a hand?"

  
  


The huge man could only nod a yes. Lily and Harry heaved with the man, and the three carried the large tree into the Great Hall. The extremely large man wiped his sweaty brow with the back of his hand. "Thanks, you two. The names' Rubeus Hagrid, new Assistant Gamekeeper and Keep of the Keys and Grounds. Who are you two?"

  
  


Harry introduced them. Lily timidly held out her hand, and Hagrid shook her entire arm exuberantly. 

  
  


***

  
  


Lily sent an own to her parents that night, telling them to meet her at Kings Cross on December 20th at 6 o' clock PM. Andrea went with her to send an owl to her best muggle friend, Lauren. In the owlry, they met James and Sirius. Goodness knows what they were doing, probably planning another prank. 

  
  


***

  
  


Lily didn't have a problem with the pranks James and Sirius played. In fact, Lily thought that they were extremely funny, and enjoyed laughing along with the rest of the school. That was, of course, before she was the recipient.

  
  


The day before the Christmas Holidays, Lily and Andrea were reviewing Transfiguration, hoping to impress their families with simple spells. Lily already had asked Potato for a spring of efflewort so that she could make a zit-zapping potion for Petunia. 

  
  


James was the bait. He approached Lily and told her that Harry was waiting for her in the Great Hall. Both surprised and pleased, she nearly ran to the Great Hall, but Harry was no where in sight. 

  
  


Lily was confused. She started heading back to the common room but heard someone calling her. "Lily! There you are!" It was Harry. In his hand he held a beautifully wrapped package. 

  
  


They greeted each other with a kiss. "I wanted to give you this," Harry said, handing her the package. "You'll leave before I'm even awake, so I wanted to say good-bye to you."

  
  


Inside the package was a music box. It wasn't very large, only a few inches in diameter . It was carved out of stone, and fairies and elves covered the surface. Lily opened it, and inside was an even smaller fairy in a glass dome. She moved around and smiled brightly at Lily and Harry. 

  
  


Also inside was a very small bag. It was made of white silk, and whatever was inside let off a soft glow. Lily looked at Harry questionably. "It's fairy dust," he said. "It only takes a pinch and whatever it is, it will be protected as best a fairy can do." Lily smiled. 

  
  


"I love it, thank-you so much." She kissed him again, then walked away in the direction of the Gryffindor common room. 

  
  


When Lily got back, it was late. Only James, Sirius, & Hayter remained, and they were once again poring over their map. Lily picked up her Transfiguration book and went to bed. 

  
  


***

  
  


Lily's trip home was nothing less than pleasant. She slept most of the train ride, and when she arrived at Kings Cross, her mother, father, and Petunia were waiting for her. Lily ran to give her mother a hug. 

  
  


"I missed you so much," she mused into her mothers chest. She knew she was close to tears. She hadn't realized how homesick she was. True, Hogwarts was fantastic, and she loved her friends, and Harry, and her Professors and classes to death, but there was something warm and welcoming in her mothers embrace that made it all seem less important. 

  
  
  
  


Christmas was, in a word, homey. In more than a word, it was crowded with relatives- and that's just the start. Nearly all of Lily's relatives turned up. Her three cousins, Steven, Sarah, & Jake, all turned up, and their parents, Uncles Craig, Doug, and David, and Aunts Mary, Dede, and Susan. Her grand-parents on her mothers side showed up, Grandma, and her two cats, and her Grandfather and his wife Jan. 

  
  


As the youngest of her cousins, Jake, was still four years older then her, she spent more time with Petunia. Petunia was an attentive listener, and wanted to know absolutely everything about Hogwarts. When Lily mentioned Minnie, Petunia suddenly became very quiet, and asked to be left alone. 

  
  


Slightly put out, but not permanently wounded, Lily used her free time for reading. She had brought with her a few books that belonged to Hogwarts, and looked up a few spells to practice, and once she had mastered them, she showed her family. 

  
  


When Lily finished all of her books, she took to walking around her neighborhood. She got together with two of her muggle friends, but their relationship had distanced, and felt awkward, and empty. Lily found herself laughing at stupid and childish jokes that weren't funny at all. 

  
  


Christmas morning finally came. Lily jumped out of bed at the first sign of light, and quickly pulled on her bathrobe, which was lying on the floor. She woke up Petunia, Jake, Steven, and Sarah, and the four pre to teenagers woke up the adults. Everyone, minus Lily's father who was turning on the Christmas music, and getting the video camera ready, stood at the top of stairs, shivering with excitement. 

  
  


"Okay!" Mr. Evans called up. The family stampeded down the stairs, marveling at the beautiful Christmas tree, and then pulling the stockings down from the fireplace. Lily sat between Petunia and Jake and unwrapped the mini presents in her stocking. Though the stocking appeared at a glance to be filled, Lily found few things in it that caught her attention. 

  
  


_I must be growing up,_ she thought to herself as she unwrapped a sweater later, _I haven't felt the heart-pounding excitement all morning! _

  
  


The presents under the tree followed the mode of the stockings. More practical gifts, nothing absolutely wonderful, a few things she genuinely appreciated. The Christmas splendor paused only for a moment, when four owls tapped on the window, unlocking it, and made a beeline for Lily. 

  
  


Calmly, though the rest of the room was staring, Lily relieved the packages and letters from the owls, and they flew away again. She giggled at all of the people who were staring at her. "What?" she asking, picking up these gifts and letters and heading for her room. She'd rather unwrap them in private. 

  
  


The first gift was from Andrea. It was, of all things, a ceramic lily. There was a note as well.

  
  


_Lily-_

_I bought this in Diagon Alley. Hope you like it. The pun was intended, by the way. _

_Andrea_

  
  


Lily smiled at the joke, and picked up the next present. It was from Minnie. It was wrapped in blue paper that had 'Merry Christmas' written all over it, and the words kept moving and changing color. Inside was a book, _Hogwarts: A History_. Lily flipped through it randomly. The table of contents showed titles like "Rowana Ravenclaw", "Salazer Slytherin", "Helga Hufflepuff", "Godric Gryffindor", "Secret Passages", "Legends about the Castle", and of course "Today". Lily turned to a random page and found a picture of Godric Gryffindor. 

  
  


He was tall man, and muscular, with curly dark brown hair and piercing green eyes. His face was stern, and he cast an aura of importance. He was wearing typical mid-evil clothes, and a red cape with gold clasps. As it was a moving picture, the cape flowed out behind him, and he winked at Lily cheekily. 

  
  


The third gift was from Madame Swift. It was also a book called "How to Make the Quidditch Team". Lily grinned at it, and said a silent thank-you to Madame Swift, as she had considered buying the book herself. 

  
  


The final gift was a joint one from Alex and Laura. It was a bottle of Sleekeazy Hair Potion, they must have caught on to Lily's frustration. Nevertheless, she was grateful for the gift. She would use it that evening, in fact, for the Christmas ceremony. 

  
  


***

  
  


Lily returned to Hogwarts on the third of January. She met Andrea on the train, she had apparently received a bottle of Sleekeazy as well. Lily thanked her for the lily as well. 

  
  


Classes began the next day. It was almost a relief, to finally be getting back to working after the break. Lily's head was mixed up, she could hardly remember anything. All of her training seemed to have leaked out of her head. Fortunately though, her teachers were expecting that, and went easy on them- for about ten minutes. 

  
  


The second Quidditch Match, Ravenclaw against Slytherin, Lily didn't go to, but soon wished she had. The Slytherin Chaser sounded fantastic, but for the life of her, Lily could never remember his name. "M" something she believed. 

  
  


The Marauders, as James, Hayter, and Sirius had taken to calling themselves, had found a new member. The poor victim, a scared looking boy named Remus Lupin, seemed almost to petrified to be part of their group. They played pranks on students nearly every day, while Remus was far to conservative. 

  
  


***

  
  


Lily walked to first Transfiguration class since break with her heart set on impressing Professor Vaskas with the Transfiguration she had learned. She opened her book to page 22, and stared at the page.

  
  


Rather than the mirror-olize spell, she was face to face with a picture of a clown with her face. "Hey Lily!" James called from his group, "What are you looking at, _huh?_ Can I see?" 

  
  


The entire corner he was sitting with broke into laughter and Lilys eyes stung with tears. What had she ever done to them? Then gradually the rest of the room started laughing. They noticed her book, and pointed and laughed, and in a flash Lily understood how all of the recipients of the Marauders pranks had felt. 

  
  


Blindly, Lily made her way out of the Transfiguration classroom. The laughter was still ringing in her ears as she walked, faster and faster, with no specific goal in mind. But where would she go? She couldn't just wander the halls. She considered going to the bathrooms for a good cry, but vetoed the idea immediately. The doors were charmed and wouldn't open unless the student had a pass. The common room was out too- some one would be sure to find her there. Madame Swift had a class right now, and she couldn't go back to her own. 

  
  


With a heavy heart, Lily made her way to the Gryffindor Common Room anyway, she would just have to run from there to the bathroom between classes. She gave the Fat Lady the Password ("Shouldn't you be in class?") and collapsed onto a squashy chair. She stared at the fire and burst into tears immediately. She was utterly humiliated. 

  
  


A few minutes later, Lily was startled by a squeak coming from somewhere around her. She lifted her head from her hands to see a rather ugly creature with large eyes and ears staring at her stupidly. "What is Mistress doing in common room when should be in classes?" the thing asked in a high voice. 

  
  


Lily stared. "What-erm-_who_ are you?" The creature bowed. "I is Gonny the House-elf, miss," then, in a much less formal voice, "Why is mistress crying?" Lily sighed. "Someone played a prank on me." The House-elf looked at her sympathetically. "I is sorry, miss. Would you like to come to the kitchen, miss?" Lily looked up at Gonny.

  
  


"I don't even know where it is," she said. "Much less how to get there without getting caught." Gonny laughed. "Why, we get there like we get everywhere! Loo-powder!" Lily was confused. "Floo powder? Is that wise? I thought that you couldn't even apparate, much less _Floo Powder_ to get into Hogwarts..." she trailed off as the House-elf was staring at her. 

  
  


"No, miss. _Loo_ Powder. Not Floo. Loo powder only goes around the building!" "Oh," Lily said. "So would miss like to come?" Gonny asked. Lily thoght about it for a split second. "Yes," she said, getting up. "How do we get there?" 

  
  


Gonny took a pinch of something out of the toga she wore, and threw it into the fireplace. "The Kitchen!" She said to it. "Come, mistress," Gonny said, taking Lily's hand. Her palm felt waxy, like a leaf. The fireplace dissolved to form an immaculate white kitchen, with about a hundred more house-elves scurrying around it. 

  
  


"We has company!" Gonny yelled, and pulled Lily over to a table where she was soon surrounded by house-elves. She was offered a good many sweets and other kinds of foods, but accepted very little. She sat at the table in silence for a few minutes until-of all things- _baby_ house-elves came up to her. 

  
  


One of them crawled up onto Lily's lap. "I is Dobby, miss," said the elf. "Would miss be so kind as to tell us about your classes?" Lily was in gratitude to the baby elves. She poured her soul out to them, mentioning all of the details of Hogwarts that not even she had realized until now. 

  
  


Some things, like how the stair cases moved and doors that weren't really doors, were quite obvious. But others, like the fact that Potato's mustache quivered whenever he was angry, was something she had to actually say out loud in order to piece together. 

  
  


Because of this, Lily started to keep a diary. After avoiding her fellow Gryffindors for a few days, she asked Harry to pick her up a journal on the next Hogsmeade trip. He offered for her to come with him, but Lily refused, knowing it would draw too much attention to herself as only third years and above were allowed to attend the trips.

  
  


When Harry returned with a bag, Lily eagerly took it from him, and ran into her dormitory, where she pulled the diary out. 

  
  


It was plain, but elegant. It was about four inches across, and six inches tall. It was covered in periwinkle-purple silk, and had a silver lock and key. The key was made to look fancy and old-fashioned, and was hung on a long silver chain. 

  
  


Using the key to unlock it, Lily slowly opened the cover. It cracked slightly. The pages were pure white, with light blue lines that covered every page. Once opened, the diary seemed to have far more pages than the average muggle diary. Lily guessed it had an expanding charm on it. 

With a shaking hand, she wrote her first entry. It went a little something like this:

  
  


_Dear Diary,_

_My name is Lily Evans. I am eleven years old and have red hair and green eyes. My friends say that I am very pretty, I am told my eyes are amazing, but I am very modest. I am a Gryffindor first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I have a wonderful boyfriend named Harry, who bought you for me. By request, but it was still very nice of him to do so. _

_My favorite class is Charms. I really like it because the professor is very nice. Most of my professors are. The teacher of Flying, Madame Swift, is especially so. She almost like a second mother._

  
  


It continued in this vein for a while, and then the perspective changed:

  
  


___Though I love all of my friends well, more than sometimes I feel distanced from them. I feel as though it isn't really a reality, that what I'm seeing is like a movie, and I can just rewind if I don't like what happens. I find my mind wandering on more than one occasion. _

  
  


_I think that I am just homesick, but what if that's not it? Is there something really wrong with me? I'm not very popular, true, but that shouldn't be enough to make me go mad. _

  
  


A few hours later, after her dorm mates had gone to bed, Lily closed the diary with a _snap!_ and locked it with the pretty silver key. She draped the chain around her neck, and examined it for a moment. Then she switched off the last light, and fell asleep. 

  
  


***

  
  


The next morning, Lily was up bright and early. She quickly showered, dressed, brushed her hair, and grabbed her wand and bag. At the foot of the stairs, she heard voices. As any other normal pre-teen, she eavesdropped. 

  
  


"I'm telling you, we shouldn't have done it!" That was Hayter, Lily had no trouble identifying his voice.

  
  


"Oh, shut up, already! Just because you have a crush on the stupid girl, doesn't mean she's not subject to pranks!" Sirius there.

  
  


"Hayter, you won't even talk to Lily! She's under the impression that you hate her. You can't refuse to speak to her, and then refuse to play pranks on her! You're contraversing yourself!" 

  
  


"It's contradicting, James," said a quiet voice. Lily didn't know the voice immediately, but guessed that it was Remus Lupin. 

  
  


"And can we please concentrate on the matter at hand? The full moon is tonight, I need you guys to..." This, however, was all that Lily heard, because the boys chose this time to head downstairs. 

  
  


Not wanting them to even guess she had been eavesdropping, she waited a few minutes before heading for the Great Hall herself. 

  
  


***

  
  


As Harry Von Kann's girlfriend, she could not be totally ridiculed from society. Rather, in fact, that the "popular" group took pity on her, and gave a cold shoulder to the Marauders. Though Lily was grateful, she felt slightly guilty, now knowing for sure that Hayter had a crush on her. 

  
  


However, she didn't even think about the rest of the conversation until midway through her Astronomy exam at the end of the year. 

  
  


_32.) What animal is effected by the tides of the moon?_

  
  


She wasn't certain on that one. If only she could have asked Remus, he always seemed to know everything about the moon. From the answer to this question, to the current phase of the moon, Remus knew it all. 

  
  


The next morning, the Gryffindor first years, minus Remus, were discussing the exam, when Lily brought up the subject of question number thirty-two. Andrea had been stumped too, and voiced what Lily had been thinking. "We should have asked Remus on that one!" The Marauders seemed to freeze. 

  
  


"Where is Remus, anyway?" Lily asked. "Andrea's right, Remus knows everything. Why, just last week he told me that yesterday was a full moon!" Most of the table laughed, but not the Marauders. James stood and up and grabbed Lily's arm. "Hey-James-wait- what?" James had started pulling her out of the Great Hall. A second year-Peter Pettigrew- laughed. "Jamsie is stealing Harry's girlfriend!" Lily and the rest laughed, but James was serious. 

  
  


He didn't let go of her arm until they were well away from the Great Hall, and she shook him off. "James, what's going on?!" He fixed her with his piercing brown eyes. "You mean you didn't figure it out?" 

  
  


Lily shook her head no, with not a clue to what he was talking about. James let out a sigh of relief. "Phew, what with what you were saying, and Remus and all, I thought you'd figured it out..." He trailed off, seeming to realize she was listening. 

  
  


"What are you talking about, James?" James looked afraid. "Oh, nothing. Just rambling on, sorry. Do you want to go make out?" Lily rolled her eyes. "One, I have a boyfriend. Two, you're just stalling. Three, I better find out what's going on here." 

  
  


James sighed. "Well, I'm not about to tell you straight out. It Remus's business. Just-well, your trustworthy, Lily. You do some research, and then you talk to me. But just, please," here he paused, looking at her with genuine remorse, "Keep your mouth shut. It's very personal." 

  
  
  
  


Not having a clue what he meant, but not getting the chance to ask him either, Lily stared after him with a mixture of shock and confusion. 

  
  


***

  
  


The day Lily boarded the train, she still had no clue what James had been implying. But she intended to find out. She had checked out several books on the moon from the Hogwarts library, and had special permission from Dumbledore to take them home for the summer. 

  
  


She was also going to owl James when she got home, and intended on visiting Diagon Alley once she had a clue of what might be going on. 

  
  


She sat with Harry, Andrea, and a few Ravenclaw and Hufflepuffs that were mostly Harry's friends on the train ride home. They played Exploding Snap mostly, and Lily quite enjoyed it. 

  
  


She kissed Harry good-bye, promised to owl a few people, and then walked out of the iron gateway into the muggle world. She met her parents there, and just before leaving, she heard her name being called. She turned around to see Hayter standing bashfully before her.

  
  


"Lily, I'm very sorry," he said sounding extremely fake. "I've been very selfish and foolhard... foolhardy- Oh, screw that. Lily, I'm really sorry. I've been an ass, and I've been jealous, but can you possibly forgive me?"

  
  


She almost laughed at the stupidity of it. However, she managed to nod, and Hayter swooped down on her, planting a kiss on her cheek, and then running off. "I'll owl you!" he called. 

  
  


Lily turned around and laughed. 

  
  


*** 

  
  
  
  


_Authors Note: Okay, I know. Rons parents didn't go to Hogwarts with Lily. Well, I wanted it to be different, and I like them! Bear with me here please. And Snape is in Hufflepuff. We're going to say that they chose the Head's of Houses the same say they chose what house the students will be in, but no song. :) So you could be head of the house that you were or weren't in. And as you can tell, Snape is not very happy about being in Hufflepuff. And talk about a fic with unfinished scenes... Since a few people complained about grammar, I am looking for a beta-reader. E-mail me at [Tonallan@aol.com][1] if you are interested. Okay, thank-yous:_

  
  


**__**Davita- _Part of my inspiration for writing this is how unfair and cruel our popularity system is._

**__**Lita of Jupiter_- My sister watches Sailor Moon too! Glad you liked it :)_

**__**Kelsey-__ You didn't have to review. Glad you did though, sis. :)

**__**Just Me- _Is this soon enough?_

**__**Lioness Animagus-__ Oh I hope I spelled that right. I like the non- L/J too because the end is known, there isn't so much tension. Also I get some freedom with my plot, but I have to actually keep to the facts! Well, basiaclly anyway. 

**__**Courtney-_ I'm so glad that people like it!_

**__**Jayna-_ Yes! Snape _is_ in Hufflepuff. Read the above A/N if you haven't already. _

**__**Charmsangel-_ You get five brownie points! _

**__**Naavi0-_ You got your wish. I'm not sure I like how this part turned out- what do you think?_

**__**Demon Child- _Love the name! Is this chapter still "cute"?_

**__**Ali-_ I'm so glad you liked it! _

**__**Lily-Potter-__ YOU HAVE A ONE AT THE END OF YOUR EXCLAMATION POINTS! :) !!!!!1

**__**Roarke-_ I totally understood your sentence. I used it too :)_

**__**Gyp-_ Remus was in the sorting, you must have missed him. Peter was the boy who bumped into Lily in Diagon Alley. _

**__**Starry Night-_ Go sign in! And when you do, add me to author alert/favorites list, etc. Brownie points...._

**__**Sage- _It got just a tad longer. :)_

**__**marykmac- _Yes I'm American. I find it hard to write using British terms, but you understand me so its all good. _

**__**Lily girl- _Yes! Sign in! Then add me to favorites list :)_

**__**Crimson Brimstone-_ Love the name :) Took me a month, and I wanted to leave time if could. I tend to lose intrest._

**__**Anne-_ ::grins happily:: You got my point! Oh, three brownie points!_

**__**kmk- _Excellent! So glad you think so!_

**__**Devil Gurl- _Fantastic? Really? You think so? Hope I didn't disappoint you._

**__**Zero-_ I went and fixed the mistake you told me about. Thank you, I didn't catch that._

**__**Akmkay-_ Your right that Rons parents aren't supposed to be in the story- but I wanted to have them in here. ::groans at the thought of introducing the Longbottoms, Lucious, and Narcissa::_

**__**Katie- _I kept going!_

**__**Cassandra Lynn-__ I didn't know it was funny, but they say laughter can cleanse the soul. Laughter makes a fanfiction so much the better, glad someone laughed. And no, dear Snapey will never be the admirer. There's a plot thats used way too much,

**__**Unspoken- _Read the above A/N if you didn't already. And I agree, Snape really is a git. _

**__**Ariana-_ I got a "wow"! I'm so glad of the positive feedback!_

**__**C.-_ I continued, and I'll give you a virtual ice cream sundae with a cherry in e-mail if you give it to me. _

**__**sapphireyes****- _I gave you the cameo! Don't know if she acts like you or not, and I'll keep her from going bad :)_

**__**Harry's Crush-_ Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. I remember your review every time I think about giving up on this fic._

**__**Hannah Pearson- _Not that this is the **actual** life before HP, but I hope it is at least a good substitute._

**__**Arianna- _I've got two of you! Thanks for the compliment. _

**__**Lily-_ I hope you managed to wait, I need all the support I can get._

**__**Minerva- _I hope that I didn't disappoint you. This part didn't turn out as good as I hoped, but I hope you like it anyway._

**__**Evil Fiona-_ Desperate, huh? Well I'm very very very glad you are.:)_

**__**Dumbledore-_ I'm ever so glad that you waited to read this. _

  
  


_Brownie points stand at this:_

_Charmsangel: 5_

_Anne: 3_

  
  


_First person to reach one hundred gets a cameo. Now there's two cameos! Go to the first A/N if you don't know what I'm talking about. _

_If you don't see your name up there, its because you didn't write a review! Write one, you'll get your name up there no matter what. If I start to get a lot of reviews (please?) Then I'll only write notes to the memorable ones. So make sure you write a memorable review. All questions gets answered too..._

_On a final note, the next part will also not be posted for about a month. I had to work my ass off to get this part up on time, so the next part might take longer. I get encouraged by reviews though, especially towards the beginning. _

  
  


___Love always,_

_Tonallan_

   [1]: mailto:Tonallan@aol.com



	3. No Time to Think, Just to Run

Title: For Better or For Worse  
  
Author: Tonallan  
  
Disclaimer: Any recognizable character is not mine. Nearly all people and places are property of J. K. Rowling author of the Harry Potter series. I claim rights to my original characters and names.  
  
Summary: Lily Evans attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She makes friends, crushes, and comes into terms with herself as she studies magic and works out some problems.  
  
Authors Note: I'm sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. It's a sucky deal for all of you, long wait and short chapter. I've had a major case of writers block, but the other night I sat down and refused to get up until I had something decent. I leave for camp tomorrow, so don't expect anything from me until at least August 15th, which is when I get back. I hope I'll time to write while I'm away.   
Anyway, this chapter is just about the summer, and I hope many of you will be surprised with the ending. I tried using some British terms, which I looked up in the back of Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging (fabulous book by the way). Please Review, because I'm inspired by to write by those who give me support. Dedicated to my beta-reader, Ravenclaw's Pride.   
  
  
No time to think, just to run  
  
The first thing Lily did when she got home was to unpack. Lily simply loved walking into her room, that was so familiar (except for the fact that it was clean! ) with all of her Hogwarts supplies mixed in with everyday tools. She got into the habit of carrying her wand around wherever she went, whether just a trip to the library or a trip to Diagon Alley. It was during one of these trips to the library that she ran into Chase Maddison.   
  
Lily was sitting at a table in the public library reading Hogwarts: A History. She had come to the library to read up on more moon-creatures, but had been distracted, and now had her nose buried in this book.   
  
Chase entered, a book under his arm, and then he spotted Lily. He walked over and sat down opposite her. He glanced at her, and then sat down to read his book. Lily, however, pretended not to notice. Chase looked back at her in a few seconds, and then put his head back down. Somehow, Lily managed to keep a straight face.  
  
They passed this way for about half an hour, until Chase finally broke the silence. "Lily!" He sounded like he had just noticed her, Lily had to give him credit for being a good actor. She looked up, pretending to be surprised. "Do you remember me? Chase Maddison, we went to Primary school together."   
  
Lily smiled innocently. "Yes, of course. You're the asshole who broke my heart." She smiled at him sarcastically, but not unkindly. Chase sighed. "Oh, come on, Lil, aren't you over that? I mean, we were just kids, its been what- a year? Where've you been?"   
  
"Of course I'm over you," Lily snapped. "I have a boyfriend now, we're crazy about each other. And he's older. His fourteenth birthday is only a few months away." Lily failed to mention two things: that Harry's birthday wasn't until November, and that she wasn't entirely over him.   
  
Chase nodded. "Well, it seems you're doing alright for yourself. Where are you going to school now? Heard you got into a prestigious boarding school." Lily nodded, it was true, Hogwarts was rather prestigious. "You are going to boarding school?" Chase looked astonished. "I thought it was only a rumor."   
  
This statement annoyed Lily. Did Chase think she wasn't smart, or something? Well, it didn't exactly take a genius to get into Hogwarts, and Lily wasn't in Ravenclaw, but still! She was third in her year, second only to a Ravenclaw girl, Emily, and James.   
  
Chase asked her a few more general questions about her school, which she tried to answer without giving away where she went to school. She was nervous that she might accidentally hint about Hogwarts, give just a trace of something out of the ordinary, or mention something abnormal. She was careful not to mention anything even remotely related to magic.   
  
"Where do you go to school anyway?" Lily stood up. Her mind spun. Lie? No, she didn't know any boarding schools. She couldn't walk away, he'd ask her again. "Oh, nowhere you've heard of," she said, halfway casually.   
  
Did I answer too fast? she thought in panic, carefully gathering her books and placing them in her messenger bag. "I'll see you, Chase," Lily said, averting her eyes. She draped the arm of her bag over her should and went quickly towards a more private area. She wanted to call the KnightBus.  
  
She had heard about it from Andrea, as a way to visit back and forth between their houses. Lily hadn't had a chance to use it yet. Bring it on! She thought savagely.   
  
She pulled out her wand and held it over the street, hoping it would be enough. A gust of wind and a loud Bang! answered her question. She was startled, but had only backed a few steps. A triple-decker, violet purple bus stared her in the eyes. The double doors opened majestically. Half expecting a theme song, she hovered at the entrance for a few seconds.   
  
"You just gonna stand there? Or are you gonna get on?" Lily climbed onto the bus, feeling in her bag for wizard money. She had a sufficient amount. "You waitin' for a written invitation?" The male voice demanded again.   
  
"How much?" Lily asked. The man- a young adult, mid-twenties perhaps- answered immediately.  
  
"Flat rate is five sickles. But you might like our-" Lily cut him off by shoving the money into his hand, and going to sit towards the back- behind a young boy with blonde hair.   
  
The man called her back up. "Where are you headed?" Lily flushed, how could she had forgotten?   
  
"6 Privet Drive." The man nodded, and jotted it down. Lily hurried back to her seat. The boy in front of her turned around.  
  
"Well that was embarrassing, wasn't it?" The blonde boy spoke with a drawl that was demanding and almost seductive- if the voice hadn't belonged to someone so young. He held out his hand. "Lucius Malfoy, Slytherin Third Year at Hogwarts." He smirked, daring her to top that.  
  
Lily shook his hand. "Lily Evans, Gryffindor Second Year." He seemed not to care.  
  
"I'm fifth in my year- and of course we have some tough competition. Quite a lot from Ravenclaw, but several Slytherins.." Lily couldn't believe she was hearing this- never had someone so openly bragged.  
  
"I'm third in Second Year." She said it plainly.  
  
"Yes-well," he said, grasping at straws, "Slytherin won the House Cup this year, thanks to my performance in the classroom." Lily wasn't impressed. She had heard of Malfoy- all talk and no brains. She vaguely remembered seeing him in the hall and thinking he had been cute- what had she been thinking?   
  
"Oh," She said, hoping to let him down easy. "That's nice." He didn't take the hint. He jabbered on about Slytherin and school and Quidditch till Lily thought she would puke.   
  
When Lucius finally got off, Lily had a glimpse of an extremely large estate with what looked like a castle, before the bus sped off again. The speed was so incredible, it nearly blew her mind. When it was her turn to get off, Lily was practically shoved off the bus, and fell forward, breaking her fall with her hands.   
  
She stood up slowly, preparing herself for the worst, half expecting someone to laugh or hoot or at least notice. But the entire block was extremely quiet. The house that was in front of her, Andreas, was extremely chic. A four-story town house, it was white with blue trim, and flower beds outside of every window. Ivy covered half of the walls, and a balcony brimming with plants stood out from the third story.   
  
She practically ran to ring the doorbell. A heavy woman with dark curls greeted her. Immediately, Lily felt as though this was a woman whom she would like to be friends with.   
  
"Er- is Andrea here?" Lily felt awkward, especially in such an environment. The woman's face relaxed into a smile.  
  
"Oh, of course. I'm her mother, please call me Cheryl. What's your name?"   
  
Lily was put at ease. "I'm Lily, I go to Hogwarts with Andrea." Cheryl led her into the entryway, and instructed her to head up the stairs.   
  
"All the way," she said, "Andrea lives at the top, she loves her privacy."  
  
Indeed she did, Lily thought as she topped the last staircase. She knocked softly on the door at the top of the stairs, and Andrea's voice answered "Come in!" Lily opened the door and poked her head in.  
  
Andrea's room was decently sized, with a full bed and wicker furniture. She had a record player on a table pushed against the wall in a corner. A door led off, but it was closed. Next to it was a full and elaborate vanity, at which Andrea sat, applying mascara. Tubes of lippy were scattered on the floor next to the chair.   
  
"Hey Andrea," Lily said, closing the door. Andrea swiveled around in her chair to face Lily. She was wearing dark lippy and black mascara that contrasted with her complexion, but it looked good, in a gothic sort of way.   
  
"Hi Lily!" Andrea hurried to embrace her and the two girls giggled as they broke apart. "How've you been, how'd you get here, and do you like my make-up?"   
  
Lily started laughing and tried to answer She tried to explain about the Knight Bus, and told Andrea all about Lucius Malfoy, whom Andrea also recalled.  
  
"Oh my gosh, Lily! Lucius Malfoy? He's gorgey!" Lily was amused by Andrea's one track mind. "But Andrea, don't you like Sirius?" Andrea rolled her eyes. "Totally! But, I mean," here she rolled her eyes, "I have no chance with him. Besides, I heard he liked that Ravenclaw slut, Arabella, or something."   
  
Lily raised her eyebrow. "Seriously? I saw her flirting Remus. I thought Remus liked her too." Andrea nodded in agreement.   
  
"Yeah, I can't believe that they don't care that they like the same girl. Must be because they're such good friends." Lily nodded and they were quiet for a moment.  
  
"Would you mind if we liked the same guy?" Lily asked Andrea. She shook her head no.   
  
"Nah, why would I? Whoever the lucky guy was, he'd never be able to choose between such gorgeous girls." Lily grinned. "Oh my god, Lily, we have so much to catch up on! You have to spend the night."   
  
Lily smiled again. "Now I know why I'm your best friend. Hand me a phone!"   
  
Lily's mother agreed, but not without complaint.   
  
"What about your nightgown? You have to brush your teeth! Do you need me to call you to wake you up? And you need to take a shower!"  
  
Lily sighed. "I can wear a T-shirt, they have toothbrushes, Andrea has an alarm clock, and they do have running water." Lily rolled her eyes. "I'll be home by noon, love you!" And she hung up before her mother could complain more.   
  
Lily and Andrea talked late into the night, and Lily told her about Chase. Andrea was impressed about how Lily had been so blunt with him, not that she agreed. "Personally, I would have been so valley girl." Thinking back on it, Lily wished she would have done so.   
  
Lily left the next morning around nine. She embraced Andrea, promised to call and owl, then took the Knight Bus home. She practically bounced through the door, and shouted "I'm home!"   
  
Petunia poked her head out of the kitchen, and said, "We're having pancakes, want some?"  
  
Lily shook her head, "I already ate, thanks."  
  
Petunia shrugged. "Whatever. There's a letter for you on your bed." Lily perked up.  
She ran upstairs and put her bag of books by the door. The letter, wasn't very long, and was written in a hand that she didn't recognize.  
  
Lily-  
We have to talk! Owl me back as soon as possible, we need to get together.   
  
  
The Marauders  
  
Lily wrote a quick reply, that she would meet them in Diagon Alley on the 3rd of June, by which time she expected to have received her Hogwarts letter. She could kill to birds with one stone, and get her Hogwarts supplies on the same day.   
  
  
Lily waited impatiently outside the back door of the Leaky Cauldron. Today was the day she was meeting the Marauders, and they were already late. Typical.   
When they finally did arrive, they were out of breath, and had to rest against the barrier. Lily laughed. "What have you guys been doing? Wreaked havoc yet? Play any new pranks of the century?"  
  
James grinned. "Get real. We just paid a visit to old Slime-Ball, Snapey-poo."  
  
Hayter joined in. "Yeah, and he had a whole supply of Dungbombs in his room..."   
  
Sirius added his two pence as well. "And they just all of a sudden blew up! We had nothing to do with it!"   
  
Remus smirked. "So now Sevi is slimy and stinky. Good combo, no?"   
  
Lily giggled innocently. She had not a clue who they were talking about. "So what did you need to talk to me about?" She asked them, when they had passed through the barrier and were walking down the street.   
  
The boys sombered. "Lily, we need to talk to you about Remus." The five of them stopped and faced each other.   
  
"But Lily, before we continue, we need to know that we can trust you," Sirius said.   
  
She nodded. "Of course."   
  
James sighed. "What we have to say is really serious, its no laughing matter, and of course...very personal." Remus was looking uncomfortable.   
  
"Lily," he said, "I think I should be the one to tell you. I'm a werewolf."  
  
Lily's jaw nearly dropped. She had researched werewolves of course, but had assumed that Headmaster Dumbledore would never allow a werewolf into Hogwarts knowingly. They changed into their wolf form every full moon, and their bite could be deadly. "Are you serious?"  
  
They nodded. "Does Dumbledore know?" Nod. "And you take...specific safety measures?" Nod. Lily smiled. "Okay, then." The boys stared at her.  
  
"You don't mind?" James said.  
  
Lily shook her head. "Of course not. Remus is still normal, still nice...and as long he's not hurting anyone...its okay."   
  
Hayter was peeved. "You mean you're not going to freak out? No screaming, or jumping up and down, or needing to be protected?"   
  
"Yeah, Hayter was kind of counting on that," Sirius muttered, and Hayter blushed. "Was not."   
***   
  
Lily spent the rest of the day with the Marauders, and they all picked up their school supplies together. While James, Hayter, and Remus talked about the possibility of James making the Quidditch team, Lily researched gossip with Sirius.  
  
"Is it true you like Arabella?" Sirius winced. "Why do people keep asking me that?" Lily shrugged.   
  
"Is it true then?" Sirius scratched his head distractedly.   
  
"Well...I guess she is really pretty..." He admitted it grudgingly, and Lily felt a wave of pity for Andrea.  
  
"What about anyone else? Do you like anyone from Gryffindor?" Sirius shook his head no.   
  
The second Lily got home, she owled Andrea, and told her almost everything.   
  
  
  
Lily kept a vague contact with Harry over the summer. She had written him a few times, and had received a few owls, but nothing had really been significant. That is, until a few days before school term.   
  
She had been playing Wizard Chess with Petunia, an activity that Petunia found fascinating, when she had received the owl. It went a little something like this.   
  
Lily-  
  
I'm having trouble writing this letter. It's hard for me to write this, and I can only hope that you understand why I have to say this.  
  
I suppose it all started at the end of last term. An evil wizard, who goes by the name of Lord Voldemort, has been wreaking hell all over Europe. You know that my parents are Aurors, that is, they are fighters, and right now their main job is fight Voldemort.   
  
The other night, my parents were sent into Diagon Alley on orders from the Minister of Magic. Voldemort was there, and he was torturing muggle-borns. My parents were killed the other night, and I have to go and live with my uncle in Bulgaria.  
  
For this reason, I will withdraw from Hogwarts and enroll in Durmstrang Academy. Because of this, I think its better if we break up. I think you know that I really care about you, but we both know its ridiculous to keep up a long distance relationship.  
  
The rest of my love,  
  
Harry  
  
  
Lily finished the letter, stunned. Finally, the letter's message dawning on her, she broke down sobbing.  
  
  
Authors Note: Well? I'm awaiting reaction, because I need the encouragement.   
In the next chapter:  
Lily gets pissed off. (At who?)  
We find out who Remus likes.  
And Lily gets invited to go to a ball. (What's the name? You decide!)  
I need suggestions for the ball, please. It's essential to the plot, but I don't know what the theme is. I'll give a cameo to whoever makes the winning suggestion.   
Also brownie point level has lowered. I realized that there is no was that people can get 100 points. So, the new level is 25. Replys to:  
  
Nebula Hawk- I'm giving you five brownie points anyway. :) Also, the map isn't finished yet, their still working on it.  
Prongs- As I told you in my e-mail, I would recommend you joining FF.N as a member. Then FF.N will write you an e-mail when I post a new chapter.  
Serina- Eleven isn't that young. My sister is 9 and in the 4th grade...what area do you live in? But, serious relationships are absurd at such a young age, and, as you can see, I was careful to end it.  
Faith- Five Brownie points for you!  
Snow Bunny Fuzzy Slippers- Five brownies!  
Evil Fiona-Oh, the age factor. Not into high-school yet, I'm only 13.  
naavi0- Your right, I lowered the target. Not just for fav. List though, special kinds of reviews too. Speaking of brownies- you get 5!  
Harry's Crush- Whats your first name, hair color, eye color, etc.? I have a cameo that I'd like to cast you in. If you don't want to say so on the net (I don't blame you!) you can e-mail me at Tonallan@aol.com  
Andrea- I don't know about the Quidditch team. Not anytime soon, I might consider putting her on the team late at Hogwarts- 6th or 7th year maybe. But she will be on the reserve team later, for sure.  
  
Brownie points stand at thus:  
Faith: 5  
Snow Bunny Fuzzy Slippers-5  
Naavi0- 5  
Charmsangel- 5  
Anne- 3  
  
All right, I'm finished. Reviews are encouraged!   
Love Always,  
  
Tonallan  



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